Three years into a lengthy renovation process, and four days ahead of schedule, drivers will now be able to use two northbound and two southbound lanes of Knoxville's historic Henley Street Bridge.
The additional lanes opened Monday afternoon, ahead of a February 28 deadline. For the time being, one side of the bridge will still be closed as additional work continues, so the four lanes of traffic will share close company.
“[Work crews] still have [a] gas line to complete on the bridge," Tennessee DOT spokesman Mark Nagi said. "There will still be final paving application along Chapman Highway, the approaches to Henley Bridge and Neyland Drive. So there is still some work to do.”
Once that work is completed, in June according to TDOT schedules, the lanes will be shifted into their final alignment and the middle of the bridge will be converted to a turn lane. Additional changes will include pedestrian and bike paths.